Haiti started burying some of its dead in mass graves in the wake of Hurricane Matthew, a government official said on Sunday, as cholera spread in the devastated southwest and the death toll from the storm rose to 1,000 people.

Hurricane Matthew has been the strongest Caribbean storm in nearly a decade, combining wind speed of over 230 km per hour and torrential rains, and leaving 1.4 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.

Now, the country is also dealing with a cholera outbreak. Cholera causes severe diarrhoea and can kill within hours if untreated. It is spread through contaminated water and has a short incubation period, which leads to rapid outbreaks.

A boy plays with a ball after Hurricane Matthew ina park at Port-a-Piment, Haiti, on 9 October 2016.

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REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

Destroyed houses are seen after Hurricane Matthew passes Jeremie, Haiti, on 8 October 2016.

REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins

A person walking on the beach is looking through the remains of a construction destroyed by Hurricane Matthew in a street of Port-a-Piment, Haiti, on 9 October 2016.

REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

A woman tries to get food at a shelter in the school Liliane Mars Dumarsais Estime after Hurricane Matthew in Les Cayes, Haiti.

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REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

A man clears debris after Hurricaen Matthew in Port-a-Piment, Haiti, on 9 October 2016.

REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

A man sits covering himself with an umbrella on the roof of a house affected by Hurricane Matthew in Port-a-Piment, Haiti, on 9 October 2016.

REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

A girl runs next to houses affected by Hurricane Matthew in Port-a-Piment, Haiti, on 9 October 2016.

REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

People walk after Hurricane Matthew in a street of Port-a-Piment, Haiti, on 9 October 2016.

REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

People are being treated at the cholera treatment centre at the hospital after Hurricane Matthew passes in Jeremie.

REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins

A boy receives treatment for cholera after Hurricane Matthew in the Hospital of Port-a-Piment, Haiti, on 9 October 2016.

REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

A woman walks next to trees downed by Hurricane Matthew in Coteaux, Haiti, on 9 October 2016.

REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

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